The Qatari group led by Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad al-Thani have no plans of increasing their £5 billion offer to buy Manchester United, according to The Times.
The Glazers announced that they were exploring strategic alternatives for United back in November last year which opened the possibility of a permanent sale.
However, we are almost 11 months into that announcement and there has been no progress thus far.
Sheikh Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have been the front runners to buy the club, but neither of them have been willing to meet the Glazers’ valuation of around £6bn.
Ratcliffe recently changed his strategy by proposing a minority 25 per cent stake. The British billionaire plans to become a major shareholder in the coming years.
Amidst this, the Qataris have no desire to improve their proposal and feel the Ratcliffe offer is a ploy from the Glazers to persuade them to increase their buy offer.
Sheikh Jassim believes the £6bn valuation is too high, considering the debts of £1bn while Old Trafford and training facilities are in dire need of modernisation.
The Times highlight that Ratcliffe’s offer could be the more likelier to be accepted. He is prepared to purchase an equal amount of Class A and Class B shares.
United’s takeover saga going nowhere at the moment
When the Glazers made the announcement last year, the fans were anticipating a quick takeover in early 2023 or before the start of the summer transfer window.
However, nothing of that sort happened. The saga has been a prolonged one with no progress whatsoever. The Glazers are adamant over their price tag.
At the moment, there is no positive news from the side of Qatar and Sheikh Jassim. It seems like Ratcliffe could have the edge with his minority investment plan.
This may not necessarily be a bad thing but the big question is how much of those funds will go into transfer signings and the modernisation of Old Trafford.
The Glazers have not spent a penny from their own pockets since taking over in 2005. Ratcliffe needs to ensure his investment would directly benefit the club.
